First of all, welcome to the forum.

I can't speak for anybody else, but I for one, would be interested in a fuel injection conversion. If it isn't cost prohibitive.

 

hello uk bandit, welcome to GWOF. i don't think fuel injection will improve the power of a 1500 wing much unless you plan on producing a cam to go with it

 

Thanks Guys,

My brother Dave is an engine tuning Guru over here and also writes for some car magazines.

A few years ago he produced cylinder heads and engines based on the ford 2 litre Pinto engine with a Cam he designed himself and 2" inlet and exhaust valves, so making a Cam for the wing or reprofiling the existing one is a distinct possibility.

Thanks for your input detdrbuzzard, this is the kind of help and constructive criticism I was looking for.

Also Thanks for your interest Cantankerous, May I befriend you so when this project becomes more solid I'll let you know. Don't hold your breath.

Cheers

Alan W.

 

I would have to consider what you are talking about, being for a bike that has now been out of production for 13+years. Just how many current owners of this bike would even be interested in such a conversion, which can not be marketed very cheaply? Just an opinion, that nobody wants to hear.

 

1500 Fuel Injection Kit -

Hey Bandit - A fuel injection conversion kit for the 1500 Goldwing sounds like an interesting project. Just a comment though - most owners may feel that the twin carbs installed from the factory are pretty hard to beat when they're operating correctly and are properly synched. The only glitch I've seen was a flat spot on some of the early 88 - 89 model bikes that was resolved with an factory rebuild kit and/or one of the 4 degree timing wheels.

Developing and updating the 1500 Goldwing fuel system to fuel injection would have to be at least as reliable and produce an improvement in miles per gallon over the carburetor setup to be feasible. If you successfully tackle these issues, the remaining drawback might still be the component and the installation cost. There are a number of after market FI kits currently available to update (4 - 6 - 8 cylinder) older special interest cars but mercy, even a bare bones kit is often pretty pricey. Like I said it does sound very interesting - please keep us informed on you and your brother's progress....

Good Luck, Michael

 

Not for me. I have owned a 2004 and 2006 with the Fuel Injection. I now own a 1997. All three were trikes. I like the carbs the best.
They just have that old school feel that I like. Now for sure, my 1800's had more power, and if I was still of a mind to travel 30,000 plus miles per year as I used to, I would still be on an 1800. But, I do much shorter rides than I used to, so I am enjoying my New 1500. In my opinion, if I wanted fuel injection, I would go back to the bike that came out designed for it.

Nobody wants to listen to my crap, because I don't own a Wing anyway.

 

sounds to me like you are forgetting the basics if you thought a turbo ( or supercharger ) would get better milage. more air requires more fuel to keep the a/f ratio correct

 

I bought my 1800 mainly for the FI, it was a 19K mile 2001. I got it for $9K. Most of the 1500's that I see are going for around 4-6K. So if the kit is 3-4K I would think most guys would go with a factory FI set up with all of the other upgrades unless they are just diehard 1500 fans.

I would like to FI my 78 el camino, but a decent kit is $3k. I can get around 22 mpg on the hiway with the old AFB, not sure how much better FI would be.

 

I recognize that this is an old post, but was just now searching for info on fuel injection retrofits. I am considering purchasing a 1999 or 2000 Valkyrie Interstate, not for the performance, especially, but for the style, ride, and comfort, all with the reliability of a Gold Wing. Unfortunately, their fuel economy is very poor and my riding regularly takes me from sea level to over 8000 feet, which EFI handles way better than carbs. I have all the issues associated with the extreme altitude changes, with my VTX1300, and wish to avoid them with my next bike.
So, any further news on your conversion? Any one else have anything?

 

There was a member of the Steve Saunders Goldwing page that tried to put a system from an 1800 on a 1500. He did a LOT of work to put the system on. Got the bike to run, but the last time I looked at the post, not that well. Still had a lot of bugs he had to work out of it. not sure if he ever got it to run right.

The Valk has a different cam if I remember right along with 6 carbs VS. 2 on the wing. Thus, the lower mileage. I have had my 1500 at 8000 feet without any issues. Bike ran great.

 

Does any one know if the 1800 engine is a drop-in replacement for the 1500, or if the mounting, etc., is different?

 

I hadn't visited this thread for a while and then I saw the activity. The 1800 is not only bigger displacement than the 1500, it's physically larger too. And the 1800 frame is totally different so the drop in would take huge mods to accomplish. That's one of the main reasons the 1800 has less leg room than the 1500 did.

 

I would think the mounting would be different, but not sure. There is another post asking the same thing. For what it would take, you might as well just buy an 1800. You will need to replace the wire harness, engine computer, cruse control computer, speedometer, mess with the air box, replace the exhaust or modify the 1500 system for the air sensor for the fuel injection.

In another post you asked about replacing the intake on your Valk for a 1500 intake. I would think it would work but have not heard anyone doing it. Another question, does the valk have a engine computer for the carbs? The 1500 wing does. Not sure how that would fit in.

Do not want to keep being a downer for your questions. It is just that the wing is a very complex bike with a lot of systems.

 

I read about one guy that put a mega squirt system on an 1100 wing, it might be the way to go for 1500 wings and valks

 

Since the original post is almost three years old, I believe they have given up.

 

I don't think it is the same guy, but there is one 1500 that does indeed have an FI system working and being ridden as a daily driver.

Looking to see if my bookmark works.

GL1500 EFI Conversion Project

GL1500 EFI Conversion Project

he lives in Phoenix , AZ
currently has an 1800...so the 1500 FI must not have worked out well.

he did a terrific job of documenting it all the way, more pictures than most threads get.